A Mission To Serve

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” -Romans 8:28

Wise beyond her years. At sixteen, she has already paid her way to Thailand once and is working towards her second. She plans to graduate early this May, and then to enter a school to train her in mission work so that upon her return trip to Thailand, she’ll be able to better help the people she came to love.

“It really taught me love has no language barriers. Love is just shown through actions,” Makayla Maves, a junior, sorry a SENIOR at Fruita Monument High School explained. On her recent adventure to Thailand, Maves followed her passion, serving the world and teaching others about the goodness of God. For twenty days, Maves and a group of 13 from the Outpour Movement followed Ray and Candace Ward (experienced fellow missionaries) through Thailand, walking through villages and staying for meals in stranger’s homes. Maves describes how the women they visited would open their doors and their hearts to these foreign travellers  “just because they want to…because they want to build a relationship.”

The group moved through several cities, and Maves described the hectic sprawl of Bangkok as heartbreaking. Bangkok, so different from the smaller villages in Thailand, opened up the eyes of the missionaries to the red light districts and day-to-day struggles that are the norm for many of these people. If you Google the city of Bangkok, you will find a series of photos- each more beautiful, bright, and vibrant than the last. You will see buildings so exotic and intricately carved, and modern architecture intermixed with the area’s traditions. But what you don’t see is everything Maves described. You don’t see the red light districts or the people hungry and hurting for meaning. Like in Hollywood, you see an airbrushed mirage of bliss and perfection.

But out in the quieter areas of Thailand, Maves saw villages like Mae Sot and Ban Sob Moei. When at first she was unsure about Thailand and what made it so different, so special as opposed to other places, by now she had discovered it. “This is what’s special. I just fell in love with the culture.” The Thai people, their culture, and most importantly their relationships was something that Maves found extremely beautiful. She was struck by the way total strangers would welcome them into their homes, how women would happily make tea for a company of thirteen even on so little an income.

Actually getting a group of thirteen people from the states to Thailand and Myanmar is a lot easier said than done. Things like airport security and customs that are already worries for most people became even more stressful when trying to keep thirteen individuals from getting lost in an airport. On top of this, transportation to all the different areas of Thailand was an ordeal. “Shoving thirteen people in the back of a truck is really fun,” Maves laughed as she recounted her tale.

As for fundraising, Maves became a local Bible saleswoman. Ordering a load of bibles, Maves began to paint the covers of each book with a unique and utterly beautiful scene. She advertised them on her Facebook page and raised about $2500 in profit.

Looking to the future, Maves plans to head back to Thailand in about a year and a half. She explains, “I knew I was probably going to be back and that I was supposed to be in Thailand…God has just really called me to Thailand.”

After her graduation in May, and a short ministry course, Maves will then make her way back to do full-time ministry. She equates it to the quote, “Life is not about the destination, it’s about the journey,” which she claims is cheesy but true. To those considering or even thinking about mission work, Maves exclaimed, “Do it! 100%, DO IT!”

For Maves, and I’m sure many others, ministry has been a very rewarding task. Sacrificing one’s own time for the sake of serving others is by no means easy, but definitely honorable and definitely worthwhile.